Electrical connecter device



Nov. 17; 1925.

' W. D. STEELE ET AL I ELECTRICAL CONNECTER DEVICE Filed Dec. 8, 14919 /NVENToRs v Q z s] 22) 1' Z QTTORNEY.;

Patented N ov. 17, 1925.

UNITED STATES WALTER D. STEELE, OF EVANS'ION,A AD REUBEN IB. 13ENJ'A1VIIN,= 0F CHICAGO, ILLI- N 1,562,379 PATENT' OFFICE'.

NOIS, ASSIGNORS 'IO BENJAMIN ELECTRIC MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF CHI- CAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION QF ILLINOS.- V y Application led December 8, 1919. Serial No. 343,307.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that we, VALTER D. STEELE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Evanston, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, and REUBEN B. BENJAMIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and Vuseful Improvements in Electrical Connecter Devices, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification. Y v

Our rinvention relates to electrical connecter devices and more specifically to plug receptacles, that is to say, toconnecter devices of the type having a plug portion for insertion into a receptacle and having a receptacle portion into which another plug portion can be inserted.

In plug receptacles, as commonly constructed, (and particularly when a plurality of receptacles are provided or when a receptacle is provided with a switch) it will often happen when the plug portion of thel device is screwed into the receptacleto make the desired connection, that the receptacle portion of the device will not be in the desired position. The plug portion, of course, is screwed in tight yuntil a good contact is made, and the receptacle portion will then be in whatever position this screwing in of the plug happens to bring it. This may result in making the lamp or other device 'which is put i'nto the receptacle portion of the device, extend in the wrong direction or it may bring the switch mechanism into an undesirable position which would make it diflicult to operate or (in the case of a pull switch) it may bring the pull chain into such a position that the chain would have to be'pulled at an awkward angle, which would interfere with the propenoperation of the switch mechanism. f

One of the objects of our invention is to provide improved means whereby the plug portion of the device maybe screwed firmly into a socket, and the outer portion ofthe device thereafter given a certain amount of adjustment to bring said outer part into the desired position. I f

Further objects of our invention are to provide @Construction which will be du receptacle portion.

rable and efficient in use, simple in construction and cheap vto manufacture.

Further lobjects will appear from the de- Fig. 1 is a vertical longitudinal partially Y sectionalv1ew of our device;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the linel2-r2 of Fig.'A 1 looking inthe direction of the arrows; .f

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line E37-8 of Fig.v l looking in the direction of the arrows;'and

Fig. 4 is a detaill perspective of the` spring i ring between the plug and receptacle por-y tions.

In order'to give a general idea of our invention, it is here stated that the construction shown comprises a plug cluster having a plug Yportion 10, a receptacle portionv 1l,

and a switch base 12,allfof which are held 1n position with respect to each other by means of a long conducting screw 13, which forms a part of the electrical connection between the plug and the switch mechanism (not shown indetail). y'

The receptacle portion 11 carries the shell contacts 141:v upon "which are screwed the insulating bushings 15. The switch mecha- A-nism 15l is carried Vby the switch base 12 upon which are also Vsuitably mounted the center contacts 16. The switch mechanism comprises afswitch for each receptacle and a plurality of pull chains 17 to operate each switch independently. n i* V V To give a more detailed description of our construction, thek plug receptaclevlO has suitable socket (not shown).

Integrally formed with the laterally exsuitably supported thereon a threaded shell contact 18 which may be screwedinto a 7 tending threaded portiony of the shell conf tact 18 is an inwardly extending flange portion 19, said'flange portion having inte- The recess 22 is slightly largerfthanithe finger 20, said finger having no` relative recess 23 in the as shown in Fig 2, provides an arcuate path of considerable extent in which the finger 21 may travel.

In use, when the plug portion is screwed l into a suitable socket, the downwardly extending linger 21 will bear against the end wall 211- of the recess 23 due to the fact that the receptacle portion is used as a handle for screwing the plug portion in.

After the plug portion is screwed in tight with the downwardly extending linger 21 bearing against the end 25 of the recess23, in order to adjust the receptacle to properly position either the electric light bulbs or pull chain, it is only necessary to turn the receptacle in the opposite direction to bring the partsto the desired position, the lost motion connection between the plug` portion 10 and the receptacle portion 11 permitting Vconsiderable rotative adjustment of' the receptacle portion without any corresponding rotative movement of the plug portion,

rlhis construction enables a positive actuation of the plug portion by the receptacle portion both in screwing the plug in and in screwing it out and still permits relative adjustment of the receptacle portion after the plug portion has been screwed completely in.

There is no adjustingor releasing` means to manipulate in order to screw the plug portionv into its socketor to withdraw the plug portion from its socket although the receptacle portion is capable of being adjusted rotarily of its associate'plug portion within the limit of the arcuate recess 1n one 1nstance namely screwingthe ,plug portion into its socket, the finger 421 may engage the end' wall 2li ofthe recess 23 and in the other instance, namely withdrawing the plug portion from its socket,

.the finger 21 may engage the end wall ofthe recess. W'hen the position of the Vreceptacle portion is to be adjusted, it is free and unrestrained to be rotated in both directions within the confines of the arcuate recess 23. Las a consequencey of our invention, the receptacle portion is capable of unrestrained relative adjustment'relative to the plug portion in either direction through the limited arcuate span of therecess 23, and the receptacle, portion when turned in one direction serves as a handle f or screwing the plug portion into its socket. fter the plug portion has' been screwed into its socket, the receptacle portion may then be adjusted rotarily within the confines of the arcuate recess 23 in order to place the receptacle portion in the desired position. When the, device is to be removed from the socket, the receptacle portion .is unrestrained in its movement .until the finger 21 engages the end wall 25 whereupon the plug portion can then be withdrawn from the socket.

The electrical connection between the plug shell Contact 18 and the shell contacts 1li is obtained by provisionvof a spring` friction ring 26, (Fig. 4) which rests on theupper portion of the receptacle portion and has a finger 2T which extends downwardly into a recess 27a in said receptacle portion. This ring has two additional shorter lingers 2S and 29 respectively which, as shown in Fig. 2, extend down into offset portions 30 and 31 of the recess 23, which positions said ring 2G firmly on the receptacle portion 11.

As shown in Fig. il, the ring 2C is bent upwardly at three points, these bent portions forming a sort of leaf spring between the plug portion and the receptacle portion 11 which will enable a good'electrical connection to be obtained without binding of the parts.

The downwardly extending lingerk 27 of the ring 26, as before mentioned, extends down into the recess 27? in the receptacle portion. Bearing against this finger 27 is a vconducting member 32 having a hook portion thereon which is sprung into the recess 27 and bears against the wall 28 thereof, thereby affording a positive and constant electrical connection between the conducting member 32 and the downwardly extending finger 27. This member 32 extends downwardly and is supported upon the receptacle portion by the` screw 3st whereby it is electrically Vconnecte-idat its lomer'endY with the arm 35 'upon which is mounted the shell contact 1a.

The circuit is from the'center contact of the plug lOt-hrough the-screw 13, switch mechanism 152t center contact 16 of the receptacle, through whatever translating device is insertedinto the receptacle portion 11, through the. threaded shell contact 141-, thence through the arm 35, connecting member 32, finger -27 and ring 26 to the shell contactl 18 of plug 10.

The member 32, as herein shown,` will allow for any inaccuracies in manufacture of the porcelain parts and will shift to compensate for these inaccuracies. However, this member 32 will at all times be in contact with the downwardly extending finger 27 ofthe ring 26, thus affording a constant electrical connection therebetween.

Theconducting screw 13 which supports they receptacle portion 11 and the switch base 12 extends through an reyelet 36in the switch ibase, this eyelet 36 serving to support a portion of the switch mechanism 15a in place on the switch base.

The center contact member 16 held in place by the screw 37- is so formed and located on the switch base that when the electric light bulb engages said center contact, it will bear against and be supported i with said plug portion, and means for mounting said portion with respect to each other whereby relative unrestrained rotation in either direction through a limited arcuate span may be effected, said means allowing said receptacle portion when turned in one direction and at one extremity of said arcuate span to serve as a handle for screwing -said plug portion into the socket and when turned in the other direction and at the other extremity of said arcuate span to serve as a handle for unscrewing said plug portion from the socket, saidvreceptacle portion after said plug portion has been screwed into lthe socket then being capable of being turned freely in either direction within said limited arcuate span to bring said receptacle portion into desired position without unscrewing the said plug portion from the socket.

2. A plug receptacle comprising a plug portion having a side contact for engage* ment with the side contact of a socket, said engagement to be effected by rotation of the plug portion with respect to a socket, a receptacle portion mechanically and electrieally connected with said plug portion, and means for mounting said plug portion and said receptacle portion with respect to each other whereby relative unrestrained rotation in either direction through a limited arcuate span may be effected, said means allowing said receptacle portion when turned in one direction and at one extremity of said arcuate span to serve as a hand hold for rotating said plug portion to connect it electrically with the socket and when turned in the other direction and at the other extremity of said arcuatel span to serve as a hand hold for unscrewing said plug portion from the socket, and said receptacle portion, after said plug portion has been screwed into the socket, then being capable of being turned freely inV either direction through said limited arcuate span to adjust said .receptacle portion in desired position without rotating said plug portion in said socket. Y,

3. An electrical device comprising a plug portion and a second portion, said plug portion comprising an-insulating base and a threaded shell contact, said base having a recess therein and said threaded'shell contact having a lug struck-up therefrom and entering saidrecess to prevent relative rotation between said base and contact, means whereby saidsecond portion is swivelled with respect to said plug portion, said second portion comprising an insulating baseV having a recess therein, said threaded shell contact having a lug struck downwardly therefrom and entering said recess, said recess being ,large enough to permit a limited movement of said lug therein, whereby a lost motion relation is provided between said plug portion and said second portion, whereby said second portion may be used asa handhold member to screw said plugV portion into a socket and whereby said second portion may thereafter be rotated with respect to said plug portion to bring it into the desired adjusted position.

4c. An electrical device comprising a plug'l portion and a second portion, said plug portion comprising an insulating'base and threaded shell contact, said base having a recess therein and said threaded shell con-l tact having a lug struck-up Vtherefrom and entering said recess to prevent relative rotation between said baseand contact, means whereby said second portion is swiveled.

with respect to said plug portion, said sec'- ond portion comprising an insulating base having an elongated arcuate recess therein, said threaded shell contact having a lug struck downwardly therefrom andj` entering said arcuate recess whereby a lost motion relation is provided between saidplug portion and said second portion, whereby said second portion may be used as a hand-hold member to screw said plug portion into a socket and whereby said second portion may thereafter be rotated with respect to said plug portion tobringit linto the desired adjusted position.

In witness whereof, we have hereunto subscribed our names.

WALTER D. STEELE. REUBEN B. BENJAMIN. 

